Typewriting machine



July, 8 1 924. 1.500,137

A. G; F. KUROWSKI TYPEWRITING MACHINE Filed April 8, '1922 //Wenf0r:

WM; J/W/Q Fatented July 8, i924,

ALFRED G. F. KUROWSKI, 0'1 BROOKLYN, NEW YORK. ASSIGNOB. T0 UNDERWOOD TYPEWRITER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORRORATION OF DELAWARE.

TYPE'WRITING- MACHINE.

Application filsdjkpril 8,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED G. F. KU- nowsirr, a citizen of the United States, residing in Brooklyn Borough, in the county of Kings, city and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Typewriting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a card-holder or label-holder of thin resilient sheet-material, in the form of a curved shell or open sleeve which may be sprung upon the cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine to clasp or grip the platen, for detachably holding it in position thereon by reason of its resiliency.

A general object of the invention is to produce a simple, inexpensive and efiective device for holding cards or labels, more particularly thin or weak cards or labels.

A further object of the invention is to grip and securely hold a margin of a card or label against the platen, uninterruptedly along the entire lateral or transverse width of the gripped portion of the card or label, and without exerting too strong a pressure or gripping action upon the card or label, so as not to offer undue opposition to the edgewise insertion of the card or label between the holder and the platen, thereby providing for inserting a thin label of weak paper.

Another object is to provide the gripping edge with upturned corners to facilitate the insertion of a cord or label thereunder.

Another object of the invention is to avoid gripping the platen too strongly, that is to say, to render the holder sufficiently flexible that it may be easily sprung upon or removed from the platen.

According to the present invention, the holder comprises a transversely-extending forward end margin forming an uninterrupted gripping lip to press one of the margins of the card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, and a tapering bodypart, which may taper gradually baclo wardly from the side edges or ends of the lip, forming afiexible finger to co-operate with the lip to grip the platen and the card or label, while enabling the holder to be readily sprung upon or removed from the platen. One of the forward corners of said lip is turned outwardly at an inclination and raised sufficiently away from the platen 1922. Serial No. 550,635.

to permit the insertion of a card or label thereunder between said outwardly-inclined raised corner of the lip and the platen; and, for convenience in inserting the card or label at either side of the holder, the other corresponding corner of the lip may be similarly raised. In order to permit the card or label to be easily inserted and positioned beneath said gripping lip, without undue opposition or too strong resistance to its insertion, the holder is provided with a weakened intermediate portion which flexibly connects the lip-forming margin to the body-part which forms the tapering platengripping finger, and said weakened connecting portion may be produced by means of a transverse row of perforations.

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a partly diagrammatic perspective front view of a cylindrical platen and a few other parts of a typewriting machine with the card-holding or label-holding device of the present invention upon the platen and holding a card or label in position for typing.

Figure 2 is a largely diagrammatic end view from the right in Figure 1, but drawn to a reduced scale and showing ashorter card or label held in position for typing.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2, but shows the platen and label-holder in position for conveniently inserting a card or label.

Figure 1 is a view similar to Figure 1, but shows the card or label holder turned end for end or reversed upon the platen as compared with Figure 1, for holding a card or label by its lower margin, instead of by its upper margin, as in Figure 1, and also Figure 4: shows the manner in which the card or label may be conveniently inserted and positioned.

The illustrated embodiment of the cardholder or label-holder of the present invention comprises a front transversely-extending marginal part 1 forming a gripping lip having a straight uninterrupted forward edge 2, and a platen-gripping body-part 3 tapering gradually backwardly along converging side edges from the side edges or ends of the lip-forming margin 1, forming a flexible finger which tapers laterally throughout its length toward its rounded free end l. The holder is made of suitable thin resilient sheet-material, preferably spring tempered steel, in the form of a curved shell or open sleeve of slightly greater circumferential length between its two ends 2 and 1 than half the circumference of the cylindrical platen 5, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, and has a tendency to contract to a diameter smaller than that of the platen 5, so that, when the holder is sprung upon the platen, as shown in the drawings, it will clasp and grip the platen, so as to be held thereon to rotate therewith. The flexibility of the tapering finger forming the body-part 3 enables the holder to be easily sprung over the platen 5 or removed therefrom. Also, the shaping of the bodypart 3, to form the tapering finger, economizes material.

The transversely-extending gripping lip 1 is preferably fully as wide, in the direction of the length of the platen 5, as the card or label 6 which it is to clip and hold against the platen, as shown in Figure 1, so that there are no parts of the gripped margin or edge of the card or label which can project from the platen or bulge away therefrom to be caught by any of the paperguiding devices commonly employed adjacent the platen; the top margin of the card or label 6 being pressed against the platen 5 throughout its full width by reason of the straight or uninterrupted forward edge 2 of the gripping lip 1. Preferably the corners between the side edges of the lipforming front margin 1 and the converging side edges of the finger-forming bodypart 3 are rounded at 7, so as to avoid sharp corners or angles.

The resilient holder may be placed upon the platen with the forward edge 2 thereof directed downwardly at the front of the platen, so that the lip 1 will hold the card or label by its upper margin, as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3; or the holder may be placed upon the platen with its forward edge 2 directed upwardly at the front of the plat n, so that the li 1 may hold a card or label 8, which may be comparatively small and stiff, by its lower margin, as shown in Figure 1.

To enable a card or label to be easily inserted between the lip 1 and the surface of the platen 5, the forward corners of the lip 1 are bent or turned outwardly away from the platen to form small guides 9, which are inclined to the main part of the lip 1 and are raised sufficiently above the surface of the platen to permit the insertion of the card or label between these guides 9 and the platen 5, as shown in Figure 1, in the case of the card 8, as shown in broken lines. As shown in Figure 4, in broken lines, the card 8 is first placed askew or diagonally upon the platen 5, and its trailing edge pushed beneath one of the guides 9 and the adjacent corner of the lip 1. Then the card 8 may be straightened, so that its top and bottom edges are parallel with the edge 2 of the lip 1, after which the card may be slid along between the surface of the platen 5 and the lip 1, until itis correctly positioned, as shown in full lines in F igure 4-.

The card or label 6, shown in Figures 1 and 3, may be similarly inserted, except that its leading edge will be pushed beneath one of the guides 9. The guides 9 are provided on both forward corners of the lip 1 in order to enable a card or label to be inserted at either side of the holder, as desired or found more convenient. In order to insert the upper margin of a card or label, such as 6, beneath the lip 1, as shown in Figure 1, the platen 5 should be turned to about the position shown in Figure 3. After the card or label 6 has been thus inserted, the platen 5 may be rotated in a forward direction so that the holder will carry the card or label around with the platen and bring it up to the typing position shown in Figure 1, in which the upper margin of the card or label 6 will be held above the printing point by the lip 1, and below the printing pointthe card or label 6 may be held by the usual platen scale or plate 10, and at its lower margin may be further held and pressed against the platen by means of the usual front feed-roll 11. The card or label 6 is now in position for typing, as indicated by the raised type-bearing head 12 in Figure 1.

Sometimes the cards or labels to be typed may be quite thin and also they may be of weak flimsy paper, and, in order to enable such weak cards or labels to be easily inserted and positioned between the gripping lip 1 and the platen 5 without wrinkling or crumpling or otherwise damaging the cards or labels, the holder is provided with an intermediate weakened portion which flexibly joins or connects the lip 1 with the adjacent wide end of the tapering finger or bodypart 3. Such weakened flexible connecting portion may be produced by means of a transverse row of rather large holes or perforations 13, so as to leave between these holes or perforations 13 slender connecting portions 14, and also leaving narrow end portions 15 beyond the ends of the row of perforations 13. The weakened or more flexible portion of the holder, comprising the narrow end webs 15 and the slender connecting strips 1 1-. enables the gripping lip 1 to be more easily sprung away from the platen, so as not to offer too much opposition or resistance to the insertion of a weak card or label. In this connection, it is to be noted that the tapering body-part or finger 3, by reason of its flexibility, cooperates position, for conveniently replacing the typed card or label with another card orlabel to be typed, which may then be brought to the printing position in the manner above noted. In typing a comparatively short card or label 16, as shown in Figure 2, in which, in the typing position of the card or label, its lower margin does not extend downward far enough to be grasped by the front feed-roll 11, the platen scale-plate 1O alone will press the lower margin of the card or label 16 against the platen. When a card or label has its lower margin clipped to the platen by the lip 1, as shown in Figure 4, any suitable means, such as the usual front paper-finger (not shown), may be provided for pressing its top margin against the platen, or, without additional holding means, a line may be typed on the card or label 8 just above and adjacent to'the upper edge 2 of the lip 1.

If found necessary or desirable, the pressure or grip of the lip 1 upon the card or label which it clips against the platen may be varied, so as to make this pressure or bite either weaker or stronger, by slightly bending the holder along its weakened portion provided by the row of perforations 13 obviously, such bending being in one direction to strengthen the grip or bite of the lip 1, and in the opposite direction in order to weaken the grip or bite of the lip.

The inclined raised forward corners 9 of the gripping lip 1 and the rounded free ends t of the tapering finger 3 facilitate the placing of the resilient holder upon the platen 5, and, together with the rounded side corners 7 avoid scratching or marring the surface of the platen in placing the holder in position upon or removing it from the platen.

Variations may be resorted to within the scope of the invention, and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1.. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the platen, so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a gripping lipv to press one of the margins of a card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, and a tapering body to co-operate with the lip to grip the platen and the card or label.

2. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder, of thin resilient sheet-material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the platen, so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising atransversely-exiending end margin forming a gripping lip to press one of the margins of a card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, and a body-part tapering gradually backwardly from the side edges or ends of said lip-forming margin and co-operating therewith to grip the platen and the card or label.

3. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the platen, so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a transversely-extending gripping lip to press one of the margins of a card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, said gripping lip being free at its slde edges or ends and also being free along its gripping edge, and a body-part comprising a central finger narrower than said lip extending backwardly substantially from the middle of said lip and co-operating therewith to grip the platen and the card or label.

4,. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the platen, so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a transversely-extending gripping lip to press one of the margins -of a card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, said gripping lip being free at its side edges or ends and also being free along its gripping edge, and a body-part comprising a central finger narrower than said lip extending backwardly substantially from the middle of said lip and co-operating therewith to grip the platen and the card or label, said finger tapering gradually towards its free end.

5. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the platen, so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a gripping lip to press one of the margins of a card or label against the platen to hold it for typing, and a tapering body to co-operate with the lip to grip the platen and the card or label, a forward corner of said lip being turned outwardly at an inclination and raised sufliciently to permit the insertion of the card or label thereunder between said outwardly-inclined raised corner of the lip and the platen.

6. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-metal to be sprung upon the platen so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a platengripping portion to extend more than half way around the platen to firmly grip the platen, a weaker portion extending completely across the holder at the forward extremity of the platengripping portion, and a card-holding portion extending completely across the card holder and projecting forward from the weaker portion, the arrangement being such that the weaker portion of the card holder may yield easily to permit a card to be inserted beneath the cardholding portion and this Without affecting the grip of the holder on the platen.

7. To co-operate with a cylindrical platen of a typewriting machine, a card or label holder of thin resilient sheet-metal to be sprung upon the platen so as to be detachably held in position thereon by reason of its resiliency, said holder comprising a platen-gripping portion to extend more than half way around the platen to firmly grip the platen, a weaker portion at the forward extremity of the platen-gripping portion, and a card-holding portion projecting forward from the weaker portion, the arrangement being such that the weaker portion of the card holder may yield easily to permit a card to be inserted beneath the cardholding portion and this without affecting the grip of the holder on the platen.

8. The combination with the platen of a typewriting machine, of a card or label holder of thin resilient material to be sprung upon the platen to grip the same and having an upturned corner at its card-gripping edge to facilitate the'insertion of a card or label between the holder and the platen.

ALFRED G. F. KUROWSKI.

Witnesses CATHERINE A. NEWELL, JENNIE P. THORNE. 

